Every object on earth has potential energy. That means it COULD move even if it isn’t right now. When an object IS moving it has kinetic energy. In today’s demonstration you are going to store energy in a spring. That spring will have the potential to move, but it won’t move until you let it move. The marshmallow catapult you make is going to transfer energy from the spring to a marshmallow. The marshmallow will have potential energy until the catapult releases, then the marshmallow will have kinetic energy as it flies through the air.

Watch NASA astronaut Joe Acaba demonstrate kinetic and potential energy on the International Space Station by showing how an object’s potential energy changes.

Websites, Activities & Printables

You can also ask a math and science expert for homework help by calling the Ask Rose Homework Hotline. They provide FREE math and science homework help to Indiana students in grades 6-12.

e-Books and Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about Science Experiments at any of our locations, or check out science experiment e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Stomp Rocket and Sling Shot Science – How Physics Makes Contraptions Work

For kids who like to tinker and build here are projects books using things around the house to make some fun contraptions like stomp rockets, catapults and sling shots. Other books will teach them about the science behind why these clever mechanical wonders like potential and kinetic energy.

Title - Janice VanCleaveTitle - The Secret Science of SportsTitle - Fairground PhysicsTitle - Launchers, Lobbers, and Rockets EngineerTitle - The Art of the CatapultTitle - Stomp Rockets, Catapults, and KaleidoscopesTitle - Break the SiegeTitle - EnergyTitle - EnergyTitle - Move It!Title - Science Experiments That Fly and MoveTitle - Tinkering

Sharpie pens are permanent markers. That means that the ink will not come off with water. If something will dissolve in water it is called soluble. If something will NOT dissolve in water it is called hydrophobic. Permanent marker ink is hydrophobic. You can do a sharpie pen tie dye demonstration of solubility.

What You Need

  • White T-Shirt
  • Permanent Markers (Sharpies)
  • Plastic Cup
  • Rubber Band
  • Rubbing Alcohol
  • Dropper

Instructions

To begin your sharpie pen tie dye demonstration, stretch part of the white t-shirt over the top of the plastic cup and secure it with the rubber band – it will look like a little drum. Choose one of the colors of Sharpie pen and make dots in the center of the t-shirt circle. Choose another color and make more dots. Repeat. The circle of color should be about the size of a quarter.

Sharpie pen tie dye science experiment supplies.

Now slowly squeeze about 20 drops of rubbing alcohol into the center of the circle of dots. Drip the rubbing alcohol really slowly. What do you see happening to the ink? Let the ink dry for about 5 minutes and then you can move the cup to a different part of the shirt. When you are done making colorful circles put the shirt in the dryer for about 15 mintues to set the colors.

The permanent ink of Sharpie pens is hydrophobic. It will not dissolve in water. The permanent ink WILL dissolve in rubbing alcohol though. That is why the colors “run” to make the pretty pattern.

Science Project Idea:

Try this method of tie dying with different kinds of markers and pens. Test whether the ink in the pens is soluable or hydrophobic. HINT: the word “washable” would be a clue to help you guess the answer to that question. Then try using the rubbing alcohol. Can you find an ink that will not dissolve in water OR rubbing alcohol?

Websites, Activities & Printables

You can also ask a math and science expert for homework help by calling the Ask Rose Homework Hotline. They provide FREE math and science homework help to Indiana students in grades 6-12.

e-Books and Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about Science Experiments at any of our locations, or check out science experiment e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Chemistry for Kids: Projects to Makes Things Sizzle, Pop, and Explode!

Chemistry is nature’s magic. With it you can learn to do amazing things, like make erupting volcanoes and and fizzy exploding ziplocs. These books will show you how to do these things and also explain the science behind why these things are happening. You can explore chemical reactions by experimenting with things you find around the house in your kitchen, bathroom or garage.

Title - Kitchen ChemistryTitle - Mixtures and SolutionsTitle - Kitchen ChemistryTitle - Real Chemistry ExperimentsTitle - Science You Can EatTitle - 30-minute Chemistry ProjectsTitle - ReactionsTitle - Chemistry You Can ChompTitle - Backyard Chemistry ExperimentsTitle - Chemistry Projects to Build onTitle - Exploring Kitchen ScienceTitle - The Kitchen Pantry Scientist

Physicists study matter – all of the “stuff” in the universe and how that “stuff” moves. One of the most famous physicists of all time was Sir Isaac Newton. Sir Isaac is most famous for explaining gravity, a concept we are so familiar with now it seems obvious to us. He is also famous for explaining how stuff moves in his Three Laws of Motion. Today we are going to look at Newton’s First Law of Motion called Inertia. This law states that a still object will stay still unless a force pushes or pulls it. A moving object will stay moving unless a force pushes or pulls it.

Gravity and friction are forces that constantly push and pull the “stuff” on earth. So, when we roll a ball, it slowly comes to a stop. On the moon, where there is less gravity and friction, “stuff” floats, and keeps floating. Try one of the experiments below to see Newton’s first law of motion in action.

Experiments:

Websites, Activites & Printables:

You can ask a math and science expert for homework help by calling the Ask Rose Homework Hotline. They provide FREE math and science homework help to Indiana students in grades 6-12.

e-Books and Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about Sir Isaac Newton at any of our locations, or check out Sir Isaac Newton e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Newton’s Laws of Motion: The Science Behind How Things Move

Newton’s Laws of Motion explain force and motion, or why things move the way they do. They are great concepts to explore by doing a science experiment. These are especially good science project ideas for kids who like to move! The concepts can often be explained using sports equipment or by understanding how amusement park rides work. These books offer ideas for physics experiments that demonstrate force and motion and the laws that govern them. Some of them provide the background information needed for the report that is often required to go with projects for the science fair.

Title - Isaac Newton and the Laws of MotionTitle - Physics for Curious KidsTitle - The Gravity TreeTitle - Janice VanCleaveTitle - The Secret Science of SportsTitle - Fairground PhysicsTitle - Gravity ExplainedTitle - Awesome Physics Experiments for KidsTitle - Sir Isaac NewtonTitle - NewtonTitle - How to Design the WorldTitle - Thud!

Looking for ideas for a science experiments? Here are several ideas that use materials easily found in your house. A couple of them might require a trip to the grocery store or pharmacy, but mostly you can just raid the garage, kitchen or medicine chest for the ingredients. Many experiments you will want to do OUTSIDE. Each one will give you directions as well as suggest websites and books to help you understand what science is at work during the experiment.

Science Experiment Ideas:

ATOMS & MOLECULES
Density: Buoyancy
Miscible Molecules: Lava Bottle
Polymers: Poke Holes in a Ziploc or Cornstarch & Borax Goo
Saturation: Baking Soda Crystals
Soluability: Sharpie Pen Tie Dye
Supersaturated: Borax Crystals
Surface Tension: Bubbles or Sand Castles

CHEMICAL REACTIONS
Acids: Bouncing Egg
Chemical Bond: Kool Aid Tie Dye
Chemical Reaction: Exploding Ziploc
Mixtures: Black Ink Chromatography

HEAT
Melting Point: DIY Slushie
Heated Gases Expand: Ivory Soap

PHYSICS
Aerodynamics: Paper Airplanes
Centripetal Force: Hex in a Balloon
Newton’s First Law of Motion, Newton’s Second Law of Motion, and Newton’s Third Law of Motion
Potential & Kinetic Energy: Marshmallow Catapult

BIOLOGY (LIFE)
Hydrologic (Water) Cycle: Make a Terrarium

Websites:

Here are some websites that have great step-by-step directions and photographs for planning great science experiments.

You can also ask a math and science expert for homework help by calling the Ask Rose Homework Hotline. They provide FREE math and science homework help to Indiana students in grades 6-12.  

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. The Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Books for Kids for a Stress-less Science Fair

Here are books to help you pick a science fair experiment that (1) follows the scientific method, (2) uses stuff you can find around the house, and (3) is great fun to do! The books will also help you understand what you are seeing by explaining the science concepts behind the dramatic results.

Title - Janice VanCleaveTitle - Experiment With Outdoor ScienceTitle - Excellent EngineeringTitle - The 101 Coolest Simple Science ExperimentsTitle - DadTitle - Maker LabTitle - Brain Lab for KidsTitle - Naked Eggs and Flying PotatoesTitle - Science Experiments You Can EatTitle - Science Is MagicTitle - Ada TwistTitle - STEM Lab

Try out these online games that are recommended by the staff at the Learning Curve at Central Library.

Visit the Learning Curve in person! From games to story times to art programs, and even an area for teens only, the Learning Curve offers a unique blend of digital and traditional library materials and programming for youth ages 0-18. Our interactive activities are aligned with academic standards and incorporate a variety of technologies to ensure a dynamic, hands-on learning experience. Enjoy this list of our favorite online games.

General

BrainPOP: Games
Lessons and games on a variety of subjects.

BrainPOP Games: Sortify Inventions
Sort the inventions into categories, or form pairs or sequences for extra points.

Famobi Games: 123 Puzzle
What number comes next in the sequence?

Free Rice
Practice subjects like multiplication and vocabulary while donating rice through the UN World Food Programme.

Mr. Nussbaum Learning + Fun
Lessons and games on a variety of subjects.

Mr. Nussbaum: Spellerz
Fend off the invading spaceships with your spelling and typing skills!

Nonograms
Nonograms are like paint-by-number logic puzzles – give it a try!

PBS Kids
Play games and activities with your favorite PBS characters!

Starfall
Math, language arts, and seasonal games for kids pre-K through Grade 3.

Stop
A clever platform video game – stop time to solve each level!

Twine
Create interactive stories, games, and puzzles.

Art

Google Arts & Culture
Make interactive art and music, visit thousands of museums and landmarks around the world, and play games.

Google Arts & Culture: Blob Opera
Machine learning meets classical composition techniques – conduct your own 4-voice choir.

Met Museum: MetKids
Explore the Met museum with a “Where’s Waldo”-inspired interactive map.

Modular Mindset: Car Drawing Game
Draw and simple vehicle and solve each level.

History

Colonial Williamsburg: Explore from Home
Visit and learn more about Colonial Williamsburg and 17th-18th century American life.

The Anne Frank House: Web and Digital
Visit the Anne Frank house online and learn more about this extraordinary girl, her life, and legacy.

Science & Engineering

Engineering.com Games: Bridge Designer
Build a bridge to safely get loads across!

Engineering.com Games: Dynamic Systems
Think like an engineer to solve each level.

Engineering.com Games: Factory Balls Forever
Changing only one thing at a time, prepare each ball to match and ship out.

Exploratorium: Science Snacks
Hands-on STEAM projects using everyday materials.

Exploratorium Tinker Lab
Tinker and create with projects from San Francisco’s Exploratorium Museum.

MIT: Scratch Coding Lab
Play and create games and animations using block-based coding language (and join the Learning Curve Scratch Studio!)

Physicsgames.net: Rolling Cheese
Guide the cheese to the hungry mouse by destroying objects that are in the way.

Scientific American + Science Buddies
At-home STEM projects, experiments, and lessons.

The Skeletal System is made up of the 206 bones that hold the body up. It is amazing that the body can direct muscles to move all those parts around. It is one thing to raise an arm up and down…but then think about what a soccer player does or a ballet dancer or someone climbing a cell tower to repair damage from a storm. Really, the human body is so amazing!

The books and websites listed below will help you learn a lot more about the skeletal system.

Websites, Activities & Printables:

Learn about other body systems:

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about the skeletal system at any of our locations, or check out skeletal system e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running. #indyplkids

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human BodyTitle - IllumanatomyTitle - See Inside the Human BodyTitle - Understanding Our MusclesTitle - Extreme Abilities

The digestive system breaks down food into smaller pieces so it can be absorbed into the blood stream and carried to the body’s cells which use it to make energy. This energy helps you run and think and play. Organs in this system system include the esophagus, stomach, pancreas & small intestine. Listed below are books and activities to help you learn more about this amazing body system. Have you every wondered exactly how food is digested? Watch this video to solve the mystery and then try out some of the online activities to explore the steps in the digestion process.

Websites, Activities & Printables

More Body Systems

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running.

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human BodyTitle - IllumanatomyTitle - See Inside the Human BodyTitle - Understanding Our MusclesTitle - Extreme Abilities

Need help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian.

The Nervous System coordinates the voluntary and involuntary movements of the body. Without it you couldn’t move, speak, or breath. It includes the spinal chord and the nerves. It also includes the brain, which helps you think and understand. All of those body parts have to work together to make your body move. Listed below are books and online activities to help you learn about this amazing body system!

Websites, Activities & Printables:

Learn about other body systems:

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about the nervous system at any of our locations, or check out nervous system e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running. #indyplkids

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human Body

The Muscular System moves the body, gives it posture and circulates the blood. It is made up of three types of muscles: skeletal, smooth & cardiac muscles. The books, websites and other activities on this page will help you get starting doing research to learn how this amazing body system makes your body move.

Websites, Activities & Printables:

Learn about other body systems:

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about the muscular system at any of our locations, or check out muscular system e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running.

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human BodyTitle - IllumanatomyTitle - See Inside the Human BodyTitle - Understanding Our MusclesTitle - Extreme Abilities

The Respiratory System supplies the blood with oxygen so the blood can deliver oxygen to all parts of the body. The respiratory system does this by inhaling oxygen and exhaling carbon dioxide. Listed below are books and websites to help you learn about this amazing body system.

Websites, Activities, Printables & Databases:

Learn about other body systems:

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about the respiratory system at any of our locations, or check out respiratory system e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running.

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human Body

This photo from the Library of Congress shows the delivery of two turkeys to President Herbert Hoover in 1929. According to White House History, the tradition of sending a Thanksgiving turkey to US Presidents goes back many years. John F. Kennedy was the first President to pardon a turkey. A pardon means showing leniency, in other words, he didn’t eat it! Pardoning the turkey eventually became an annual event for United States Presidents. You might wonder what happened to all those pardoned turkeys? I found out they have gone to several different places including George Washington’s Mount Vernon and Disney World!

There have been many United States Presidents, more than 40, so there are a lot of oddball traditions and just plain funny stories about their quirky habits. There are even more stories about their pet projects and special accomplishments. Check out some of these books to find out behind-the-scenes stories that probably won’t make it on your social studies test!

Would you like to learn about how presidents get elected? Take a look at Elections for Kids to see books, databases, websites, and artifacts that will help learn more or do research to answer homework questions about elections.

You can start by looking at this voting machine that is an Artifact from The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. It was used by voters in Indianapolis from the 1930s through the 1980 election. Look at more elections artifacts from the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis’ Collection.

Websites, Activities & Printables:

NoveList K-8: Stories about Elections is a database you can use in any IndyPL Library Branch or at home to learn about elections for kids. Login using your library card number. Novelist will show you fiction chapter books and picture books you can read about elections. Click on “Check the Library Catalog” to see if IndyPL has the book.

Unique Stories About U.S. Presidents

Unique often equals funny! All the astonishing accomplishments and silly details fit to print about which President sang with his pet parrot, which one took dancing lessons, which one got a speeding ticket on a horse, and which one ran down Pennsylvania Avenue (the street in front of the White House) chasing after a goat! Hint: the goat one is the President from Indiana!

Title - Teddy Roosevelt Was A Moose?Title - Abe LincolnTitle - JoeyTitle - Dancing HandsTitle - Hard Work, but ItTitle - Lincoln Clears A PathTitle - Close CallsTitle - TeddyTitle - Hanging Off JeffersonTitle - Who Named Their Pony Macaroni?Title - President Taft Is Stuck in the BathTitle - The President Sang Amazing Grace

Imagine Your Story! Close your eyes and picture yourself crawling through caves, climbing ocean cliffs, making the game winning basket, winning a singing competition, or outsmarting a fire breathing dragon! Stories can take you places you have never been to do amazing things. Sometimes the places have never really existed, like Hogwarts, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have wonderful adventures there! For an afternoon of fun, try these imagination activities.

Listen to a Story

Dragons are a favorite character in many imaginary stories. They can be fierce, or funny, or loyal companions. Here are five favorite dragon stories you can read or listen to online as well as two more about magical, enchanting places and the adventures that happen there. Click on a book cover to read or listen to the story.

title - My Father's Dragontitle - The Dragon Machinetitle - When A Dragon Moves intitle - There Was An Old Dragon Who Swallowed A Knighttitle - How to Train your Dragon

My Father’s Dragon is the story of a boy who runs away from home to rescue a baby dragon. He can talk to animals, he travels to an exotic island, he battles alligators, and he hopes to take home a baby dragon! You can read My Father’s Dragon as an e-book or follow along below as it is read aloud.

Here are three more award winners about fantastical adventures in imaginary places. The Graveyard Book is about a boy raised in a graveyard by the ghosts who live there! Sylvester and the Magic Pebble is the story of a donkey who makes an unintentional wish, turning himself into a pebble. And Where the Wild Things Are is the story of a boy who takes a magical journey, all while stuck in his room after being sent there for being a wild thing! Click on a book cover to read or listen to the story.

title - The Graveyard Booktitle - Sylvester and the Magic Pebbletitle - Where the Wild Things Are

Imagination Activities

Try one of these online or printable activities at home to learn more about dragons. Imagine having a dragon for a friend. What kind of adventures would you have together? Imagine your own dragon story and then draw pictures to go with it!

Embrace Imagination and Curiosity

Here are some favorite books for imaginative and curious minds. These books invite us to look past our everyday lives, to ask questions about the world around us, and to open our minds to the fanstastical!

Title - The Midnight FairTitle - I WonderTitle - LiftTitle - The Year We Learned to Fly

Need help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

The books, databases, websites and artifacts on this page will help you do research and answer homework questions about elections. Explore Unique Stories of the U.S. Presidents as well as The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis Election Artifacts Collection.

Websites, Activities & Printables

Novelist K-8 Logo

NoveList K-8: Stories about Elections is a database you can use in any IndyPL Library Branch or at home. Login using your library card number. Novelist will show you fiction chapter books and picture books you can read about elections. Click on “Check the Library Catalog” to see if IndyPL has the book.

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about elections at any of our locations, or check out election e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Elections and Voting – It’s a Big Deal!

Choose a book or two from this list to learn about the United States election process, who can vote, and the history of how each has developed over the last 200+ years. Find out the answers to some puzzling FAQs: What’s a ballot? What is a poll? What does suffrage mean? Why couldn’t Black people vote? Why couldn’t women vote? You can read a general history or focus on one issue, event, or person who made a difference. #indyplkids

Title - Black Voter SuppressionTitle - ElectionsTitle - The Voice That Won the VoteTitle - Stolen JusticeTitle - Give Us the Vote!Title - The KidsTitle - The WomanTitle - How Elections WorkTitle - One Person, No Vote : How Not All Voters Are Treated Equally, Ya EditionTitle - VotingTitle - WhatTitle - Fight of the Century

Beginning or reluctant readers ages 6 – 11 are often invited to read aloud to a registered therapy dog in our libraries – a dog who loves to listen to stories! Children register to read for a 15 minute paws to read session. Reading to a dog is a great way to improve a child’s reading skills and self-confidence. Children may read from any book they choose.

  • Event: Glendale Branch Grand Opening
  • Date & Time: Saturday, March 30, 10:00am
  • Location: Glendale Branch
  • Description: Join us on March 30 at the brand new Glendale Branch for a grand opening celebration beginning at 10 a.m.! The new Branch is located at 3660 East 62nd Street, the former site of John Strange Elementary School.
  • No Registration Required.
  • Event: Paws to Read at College Avenue
  • Date & Time: Tuesday, April 02, 6:00pm
  • Location: College Avenue Branch
  • Description: School-aged children who are beginning or reluctant readers are invited to read to a non-judgmental registered therapy dog who loves to listen to stories. It’s a great way to improve a child’s reading skills and self-confidence!
  • Register Here
  • Event: Paws to Read at Wayne
  • Date & Time: Saturday, April 06, 11:00am
  • Location: Wayne Branch
  • Description: School-aged children who are beginning or reluctant readers are invited to read to a non-judgmental registered therapy dog who loves to listen to stories. It’s a great way to improve a child’s reading skills and self-confidence!
  • Register Here

If your child has never tried reading to a dog before and wants to learn a little about what that might be like to attend a paws to read session, listen below to the story, Madeline Finn and the Library Dog. Meet Madeline, who does not like to read. She doesn’t like to read books, magazines, or even the menu on the ice cream truck! Mrs. Dimple, the librarian, suggests Madeline read to a dog, and so Madeline meets Bonnie, who is beautiful, like a big snowy polar bear, and a very good listener! When Madeline can’t get the words right, Bonnie doesn’t mind. Madeline realizes it’s ok to go slow and keep trying.

Here are some more dog stories you can listen to, just click on a book jacket to hear the story!

title - Charlie the Ranch Dogtitle - A Greyhound, A Groundhogtitle - Harry, the Dirty Dogtitle - The Poky Little Puppytitle - R Is for Rocket

Websites, Printables & Activities:

e-Books & Audiobooks:

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about dogs at any of our locations, or check out dog e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Looking for even more books to read about dogs? Try these recommendations from IndyPL staff:

Need help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text, or email Ask-a-Librarian.

La Princesa and the Pea

Fairy tale classics like The Princess and the Pea transform when they are set in a new place or told from a new point of view. La Princesa and the Pea is a retelling of the classic fairy tale, The Princess and the Pea, set in Peru. In it, a princess’s authenticity is tested by her ability to feel the presence of a single pea under the pile of mattresses she is instructed to sleep on.

There are lots of stories like The Princess and the Pea that kids can rattle off without even thinking very much – The Three Little PigsThe Three BearsCinderella, etc. Some of these stories are so commonly told that children all over the world know them. When the stories are told in different places, they take on interesting differences that reflect the land and culture where the story is being told.

The illustrator of La Princesa and the Pea, Juana Martinez-Neal, won the 2018 Pura Belpre Award for doing an outstanding job of communicating cultural identity through illustration. The award is given for the best work portraying the Latino cultural experience. In Juana’s Illustrations in La Princesa and the Pea, for example, you can see authentic Peruvian weaving like the weaving you see in these Peruvian artifacts from The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

As you read the story, look closely at the illustrations to see all the steps that are required to make a weaving. As the story of the princess is revealed, so is the Peruvian setting and the experiences of a young lady living there. Classic tales told like this are wonderful opportunities for you to see your own culture reflected in a universal story or see the culture of someone different than yourself. Read more from the list below!

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books at any of our locations, or check out e-books and e-audiobooks from home right to your device. Need help? Call or ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or text a librarian at 317 333-6877.

Here are some favorite classic tales and traditional stories told with details and cultural traditions of the American Southwest, Mexico, Central or South America.

Title - AdelitaTitle - Paco and the giant chile plantTitle - The Runaway TortillaTitle - La Princesa and the PeaTitle - The Pot That Juan BuiltTitle - The Three CabritosTitle - Rubia and the Three OsosTitle - The Three Little JavelinasTitle - Señorita GorditaTitle - The Cazuela That the Farm Maiden StirredTitle - Chachalaca ChiquitaTitle - The Party for Papá Luis

The Circulatory System moves nutrients to the cells of the body to feed them and help them fight disease. The main parts of this system are the heart, blood and blood vessels. Arteries carry blood and the oxygen in it from the lungs to all of the other cells of the body. Once the oxygen is used, veins carry the blood back to the heart. Inside the heart are four chambers. Each chamber is a little pump that pushes the blood through the body. It takes 1-2 minutes for blood to circulate all around your body.

Websites, Activities & Printables

Learn about other body systems:

e-Books & Audiobooks

Use your indyPL Library Card to check out books about the circulatory system at any of our locations, or check out circulatory system e-books and audiobooks from OverDrive Kids right to your device! If you have never used OverDrive before, you can learn how to use it for both e-books and audiobooks.

Need more help? Ask a Library staff member at any of our locations or call, text or email Ask-a-Librarian. Additionally, the Tinker Station helpline at (317) 275-4500 is also available. It is staffed by device experts who can answer questions about how to read, watch and listen on a PC, tablet or phone.

Human Body Facts and Functions Revealed in Diagrams, Infographics, and Photographs

Books for kids that explore the digestive, circulatory, nervous, excretory, muscular, and respiratory systems. Learn the names of each body part and all the details about how they function together to keep us breathing, dancing, jumping and running.

Title - The Human BodyTitle - Why DonTitle - It Takes GutsTitle - The Good Germ HotelTitle - Bodies Are CoolTitle - Your Amazing Digestion From Mouth Through IntestineTitle - Artificial OrgansTitle - The Human BodyTitle - IllumanatomyTitle - See Inside the Human BodyTitle - Understanding Our MusclesTitle - Extreme Abilities